Chapter 197: Shocking Change (Part 1)
For most common people in the inland of the empire, the golden autumn of October should be a busy season.
It is both the harvest season and the prelude to cooler weather.
The wheat fields are waiting to be harvested, and the civilians in their spare time have to prepare for the cold winter that is about to come.
The nobles were also generally busy counting the harvests in their own territories, and urging the commoners and serfs to pay the annual taxes on time.
But,
This year, the picture is completely different.
When the lands in the northern border of the empire fell one after another and countless nobles in the northern border died, the imperial army of the Norman Empire finally began to advance northward.
After suffering huge casualties and several months of struggle, the Norman soldiers finally stabilized their position on the Sognefjord, stopping Odin's army from continuing its southward advance.
The Sogn Plain is known as the "crossroads" of the northern empire. Countless roads converge here, making it a key transportation hub leading to the western and central parts of the empire.
For hundreds of years, the Cornelius family has been the master of the Sogn Plain. Relying on the powerful family private army and huge family wealth, they control this battleground.
But... everything the Cornelius family had was eventually turned into nothing under the iron hoof of the Odin people.
only,
This was not due to the burning, killing and looting carried out by the Odin people on the Sogn Plain, but because of the arrival of nearly 100,000 imperial soldiers...
Imperial Marshal Teodoro Lawton arrived late with the imperial soldiers and brought the order from the imperial emperor.
then,
In the gap between resisting the Odin people's attack, the imperial soldiers who were directly under the Norman royal family accused this family, which had existed on the continent for a hundred years, of "avoiding war and suspected of collaborating with the enemy" and made it disappear completely.
If it happened on a normal day, such a move would undoubtedly cause an uproar.
However, under the threat of the barbaric Odin people who treated the nobles as cattle and horses, many nobles on the continent fell silent at this time.
After all, compared to the emperor of the empire who might still have a little mercy, the aggressive Odins are the nightmare of many nobles.
Those nobles who were brutally executed after being captured were the naked precedents before them! Although both sides were probably not good things for them, in the final analysis, the threat of the Odin people was more feared.
Bruno already had a general idea of what happened on the Sogn Plain. That was why he paid more and more attention to the military situation of Idar County and continued to reorganize and expand Idar's regular army.
Bruno did not believe that the Norman emperor, who had made it clear that he wanted to restore the royal authority, would show leniency to the nobles in the future. Even if he restrained himself after defeating the Odin people, the most likely possibility was that he would be boiling a frog in warm water.
Therefore, as a member of the nobility, he naturally had to make plans early.
However, the Norman army on the Sogn Plain had an army of 100,000 soldiers who could directly participate in the combat.
On the other hand, Odin's army, all together, only had over 50,000 people.
But even though the difference in numbers between the two sides was close to two to one, and the attacking side was at a numerical disadvantage, the two sides were only barely tied.
From this, the combat effectiveness of Odin's army can be seen.
Today, the 10,000 Odin cavalrymen led by Odin Marshal Portia Mariano, who crossed the Forest of Monsters to raid the Norman Empire, have joined the army of Odin monarch O'Sullivan and are stationed safely in the Sogn Plain.
As for the Norman Empire, in addition to the Norman emperor's most trusted general, Imperial Marshal Theodore Lawton, the second prince Rez Alexander also joined the army, vowing to drive the Odins back to the Armanches Plain.
Actually... the Odin people are not in a hurry to fight now.
Because the armies of both sides were facing each other on the Sogn ogne Plain, and to the north of the Sogn ogne Plain, countless Odin people were riding on their horses, driving the people in the occupied areas of the Norman Empire to harvest wheat and transporting cartloads of food and supplies to the Odin Empire and the front-line positions on the Sogn ogne Plain.
And the longer the confrontation lasted, the more thoroughly the Odinites plundered the northern part of the empire.
but……
Perhaps the Norman Empire's Marshal Theodore Lawton did have excellent strategic awareness and a sense of the overall situation, or perhaps the Norman Emperor finally remembered that the land and people in the northern border were also part of his wealth, so...
After realizing the Odinites' conspiracy, the Norman army, relying on their numerical advantage, under the command of Theodore Lawton, launched a frenzied attack on the soldiers of the Odin Empire.
Through war, the Odin Empire can consume the excess population.
But in comparison, the number of people in the Norman Empire was countless.
As a result, a large number of serfs carrying black bread were driven onto the battlefield to consume Odin's arrows and energy.
The lives of serfs are not lives, this is a deeply rooted idea engraved in the subconscious of almost all nobles.
For every ten arrows shot by Odin's soldiers, four or five serfs would fall on the battlefield, but even so, the Norman Empire still continued to recruit serfs from all over the place in an endless stream.
Although these Odin soldiers who had been hunting in the mountains and fishing in the sea since childhood were extremely brave, they were not invulnerable to swords and guns. As a result, under the desperate attack of Teodoro Lawton, they gradually showed signs of decline.
There was no way. The number of serfs in the Norman Empire was simply too large. In an era when human life was worthless, this was a huge advantage unique to the Norman Empire.
First, they used serfs to consume their numbers, and then the imperial soldiers charged. This simple and unadorned tactic brought huge casualties. However, it was precisely under this tactic of killing 800 enemies and losing 1,000 of their own that the Odin people finally began to think of retreating...
Fight or retreat?
The young Odin monarch O'Sullivan finally had to face this dilemma...
…
St. Lawrence.
A fully armed knight was galloping on the wide central street of St. Lawrence. If he was not carrying urgent military intelligence from the Sogn Plain, he would have been intercepted by St. Lawrence's guards as soon as he entered the city.
The afterglow of the setting sun shone on the steps of the Regency Council and on the tired body of Duke Doring.
Leaning against the marble pillar outside the Regency Parliament, a feeling of powerlessness enveloped Yersin Paris's heart.
The fall of Dorin County dealt a heavy blow to the Duke, making him the first duke to lose his territory since the founding of the Norman Empire.
The knight who was running straight towards the palace was wearing a suit of armor that had been scrubbed to a shine.
As a noble who had lived for most of his life, he could guess from the messenger's attire that the Empire had once again achieved "victory". Even if it was not victory, the Norman Empire at least had an advantage...
This is both good news and bad news for him.
Today's royal family is determined to get rid of the influence of the Regency Council on the political situation and to regain the supreme majesty that belongs only to the emperor.
As one of the five regent dukes of the Regency Council, a down-and-out duke who had lost all his territories and private armies, I was undoubtedly a good opportunity to make a breakthrough...
Duke Dorin raised his head and stared at the palace not far away for a long time without saying a word.
(End of this chapter)
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